Hello All,
I'm new here, so apologies if I have put this in the wrong place! I am also new to 3D printing. We have a Bambu X2D with ASM Pro 2 and a Creality dryer. I am trying to print a sprocket for a prototype system we are building at my work, but I am having some issues. The sprocket is ASA, I have been printing the supports from ASA, then having a PETG layer before carrying on with the ASA for the main product. From my limited knowledge, I was under the impression the PETG layer would mean the supports would be easily pulled away from the main product. However what I am actually finding is that the supports are bonding to the main product through the PETG layer, meaning the print cannot be used. I have tried many different programs, changing the air gap, layer height etc etc, but I have the same issue each time! I am wondering if anyone has had a similar issue before and if so, do you have any recommendations that could help?
The file was too large to upload here, so I have uploaded it to WeTransfer if anyone wanted to download it and have a look: https://we.tl/t-TpYS4pC4vv0FBmPE
Thanks in advance for your help!
Joss
Printing ASA with PETG Supports
Moderator: CrazyIvan
Re: Printing ASA with PETG Supports
Welcome to the forum. What we lack in quantity we make up for in quality.
I have no experience with ASA, but I have found the same problem with printing in PETG and using PLA as the support interface layer: the interface layer bonds to the part just as well as it bonds to the support structure (or probably better), so there's no reason for it to part company with the part rather than the support. I realised it would be easier to remove the interface if it was more than one layer, but I couldn't find a way to do that, regardless of the interface layer count (Orca, and I guess other Orca-based slicers). (Tip: regardless of the actual colour of the filaments, set them up in the slicer as contrasting colours so you can see what's happening in the slicer preview.)
It is worth understanding why this process was developed. One solution to the problem of support scarring is to use soluble support material – eg PVA. PVA is soluble in water (other soluble materials require special solvents), so you just dunk the print into water for a while and it comes out clean. Soluble filament is expensive though, so rather than print the whole support in PVA, the slicer just prints it as the thin interface layer.
Another thing is that switching filaments takes a lot of time on a single-toolhead printer, so by only printing the interface layer in a different filament rather than the whole support, the print time reduces dramatically.
Problem A is less relevant when not using soluble filament, and problem B isn't much of an issue for multi-toolhead printers,
What I found was that by ticking the box for "base" as support filament as well as "interface" (I'm not at home at the moment, so I can't check the details), the whole of my support structure was printed in PLA, and then it pulled away from the finished part in one easy operation.
The same should apply to other Orca-derived slicers.
In case you haven't realised, the slicer is where all the clever stuff is when it comes to 3D printing. The printer itself is just a dumb robot, carrying out the instructions the slicer gives it.
I have no experience with ASA, but I have found the same problem with printing in PETG and using PLA as the support interface layer: the interface layer bonds to the part just as well as it bonds to the support structure (or probably better), so there's no reason for it to part company with the part rather than the support. I realised it would be easier to remove the interface if it was more than one layer, but I couldn't find a way to do that, regardless of the interface layer count (Orca, and I guess other Orca-based slicers). (Tip: regardless of the actual colour of the filaments, set them up in the slicer as contrasting colours so you can see what's happening in the slicer preview.)
It is worth understanding why this process was developed. One solution to the problem of support scarring is to use soluble support material – eg PVA. PVA is soluble in water (other soluble materials require special solvents), so you just dunk the print into water for a while and it comes out clean. Soluble filament is expensive though, so rather than print the whole support in PVA, the slicer just prints it as the thin interface layer.
Another thing is that switching filaments takes a lot of time on a single-toolhead printer, so by only printing the interface layer in a different filament rather than the whole support, the print time reduces dramatically.
Problem A is less relevant when not using soluble filament, and problem B isn't much of an issue for multi-toolhead printers,
What I found was that by ticking the box for "base" as support filament as well as "interface" (I'm not at home at the moment, so I can't check the details), the whole of my support structure was printed in PLA, and then it pulled away from the finished part in one easy operation.
The same should apply to other Orca-derived slicers.
In case you haven't realised, the slicer is where all the clever stuff is when it comes to 3D printing. The printer itself is just a dumb robot, carrying out the instructions the slicer gives it.
I'll probably reclassify this as "Materials".